Richard T. Di Giulio

Research Professor of Environmental Toxicology in the Division of Environmental Science and Policy

Dr. Di Giulio serves as Director of Duke University's Integrated Toxicology Program and the Superfund Basic Research Center.

Dr. Di Giulio's research is concerned with basic studies of mechanisms of contaminant metabolism, adaptation and toxicity, and with the development of mechanistically-based indices of exposure and toxicity that can be employed in biomonitoring. The long term goals of this research are to bridge the gap between mechanistic toxicological research and the development of useful tools for environmental assessment, and to elucidate linkages between human and ecosystem health. The bulk of Dr. Di Giulio's work employs a comparative approach with aquatic animals, particularly fishes, as models. Of particular concern are mechanisms of oxidative metabolism of aromatic hydrocarbons, mechanisms of free radical production and antioxidant defense, and mechanisms of chemical carcinogenesis, developmental perturbations and adaptations to contaminated environments by fishes.

Appointments and Affiliations

• Research Professor of Environmental Toxicology in the Division of Environmental Science and Policy

Contact Information

• Office Location: A346b Lev Sci Res Ctr, Durham, NC 27708
• Office Phone: (919) 613-8024
• Email Address: richd@duke.edu

Education

• Ph.D. Virginia Polytech Institute and State University, 1982
• M.S. Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, 1978
• B.A. University of Texas, Austin, 1972

Courses Taught

• ENVIRON 360D: Environmental Health: Pollutant Chemistry and Toxicology
• ENVIRON 393: Research Independent Study
• ENVIRON 394: Research Independent Study
• ENVIRON 610: Ecotoxicology
• ENVIRON 899: Master's Project

In the News

• Direct Impact: NIH Funding and the Duke Superfund Research Center (Mar 22, 2022)
• From Clean Up To Cutting Edge Research (Nov 3, 2017 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
• Superfund Center Wins Five-Year Renewal (Jul 11, 2017)
• Synthetic Chemicals Understudied Drivers of Environmental Change (Jan 24, 2017 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
• Blocking Key Gene Reduces Cigarette Smoke Toxicity in Fish Embryos (Sep 19, 2016)
• Duke Awards Distinguished Professorships, Inducts New Bass Society Members (May 5, 2016)
• An Unexpected Direction (Nov 10, 2014)
• Duke And UNC Superfund Research Centers Hosting Visiting Journalists (Mar 10, 2014)
• Mining Appalachia has permanent effects on its landscape (Jan 28, 2014 | Duke Research Blog)

Representative Publications

• Trevisan, R; Ranasinghe, P; Jayasundara, N; Di Giulio, RT, Nanoplastics in Aquatic Environments: Impacts on Aquatic Species and Interactions with Environmental Factors and Pollutants., Toxics, vol 10 no. 6 (2022) [10.3390/toxics10060326] [abs].
• Woodyard, M; Polidoro, BA; Matson, CW; McManamay, RA; Saul, S; Carpenter, KE; Collier, TK; Di Giulio, R; Grubbs, RD; Linardich, C; Moore, JA; Romero, IC; Schlenk, D; Strongin, K, A comprehensive petrochemical vulnerability index for marine fishes in the Gulf of Mexico., The Science of the Total Environment, vol 820 (2022) [10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.152892] [abs].
• Hawkey, AB; Piatos, P; Holloway, Z; Boyda, J; Koburov, R; Fleming, E; Di Giulio, RT; Levin, ED, Embryonic exposure to benzo[a]pyrene causes age-dependent behavioral alterations and long-term metabolic dysfunction in zebrafish., Neurotoxicol Teratol, vol 93 (2022) [10.1016/j.ntt.2022.107121] [abs].
• Redfern, LK; Jayasundara, N; Singleton, DR; Di Giulio, RT; Carlson, J; Sumner, SJ; Gunsch, CK, The role of gut microbial community and metabolomic shifts in adaptive resistance of Atlantic killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus) to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons., The Science of the Total Environment, vol 776 (2021) [10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145955] [abs].
• Silva, RA; Di Giulio, RT; Rice, CD, The In Vitro Proinflammatory Properties of Water Accommodated Sediment Extracts from a Creosote-Contaminated US Environmental Protection Agency Superfund Site., Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, vol 40 no. 6 (2021), pp. 1576-1585 [10.1002/etc.5001] [abs].